The New York Taxi and Limousine Commission (TLC) on Thursday approved an amended set of rules in an effort to move along its Taxi of Tomorrow program, scheduled for launch this fall.

According to the New York Times, the panel voted 7 to 1 in favor of requiring a near-uniform fleet of Nissan NV200 yellow cabs.

Much like some other tech-infused New York taxi programs, the Taxi of Tomorrow program has been forced to jump through legal hoops. Last month, a Manhattan State Supreme Court judge ruled that the plan violated the city's administrative code, which rules that cabbies must be able to purchase a hybrid vehicle. The NV200 is not a hybrid vehicle.

The TLC attempted to find a common ground, adopting a new standard that only hybrids with a large interior  130 cubic feet or more  are permitted. Still, that wasn't enough for the yellow taxi industry, which argued that the change does not allow meaningful access to hybrids, the Times reported.

"The only compliant hybrids are prohibitively expensive," David Pollack, executive director of the Committee for Taxi Safety, told the paper. On the contrary, a TLC spokesman said that the Prius V costs $26,650  about $3,000 less than the NV200.

Other complaints have been heard from advocates of the handicapped community, who criticized the new vehicles' lack of wheelchair access, which the Times said can be retrofitted to accommodate a wheelchair.

The Taxi and Limousine Commission did not immediately respond to PCMag's request for comment.

In April 2012, the city selected the Nissan NV200 to become the city's next exclusive taxi, complete with a mobile charging station for passengers to juice their cell phone or tablet along the trip. Drivers will also get a standard navigation system with an integrated rearview backup mirror.

The cab has room for four passengers plus their luggage. The vehicles also boast sliding doors for easy entry and exit, and a transparent roof panel, opening side windows, and special odor-resistant fabric.

Meanwhile, NYC's taxi e-hail program is once again back in action, following a roller coaster ride of a fight for city-wide adoption of a system that allows mobile users to flag down a yellow cab via a smartphone app.

About the Author

Stephanie joined PCMag in May 2012, moving to New York City from Frederick, Md., where she worked for four years as a multimedia reporter at the second-largest daily newspaper in Maryland. She interned at Baltimore magazine and graduated from Indiana University of Pennsylvania (in the town of Indiana, in the state of Pennsylvania) with a degree in ... See Full Bio

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